NC:  A few nice trees...   Will Blozan   Aug 23, 2005 16:33 PDT  Hello all, Just a quick note on some nice trees I have located recently, some of which may be NC State Champions. I was at the NC Zoo last week in Asheboro, NC and was pleased to see a fine collection of exotic and native trees. Most notable to me was the Gordonia  lasianthus, or loblolly bay. This neat tree was in full bloom and many impressive  specimens were common. it is quite similar to Franklinia except it is evergreen.  What a beautiful tree! A new favorite for sure.  I was floored though, by a  tree growing in the swamp forest exhibit near the "North American" entrance. It was both the largest girth and tallest specimen I have ever seen (which admittedly is not many). I actually saw it from a distance and was wondering what it could be since the crown shape was peculiar. A very narrow, tight and columnar crown only 13' wide somehow produced a tree 43.7' tall. All this originated on a 17" CBH stem which crushes the former NC State Champion (although I do not have the new numbers from last year's survey). I also measured an 11" sweetbay (Magnolia virginiana) to 26.9'. I have never measured one so I have no idea how big they can get. A Sitka spruce in the polar bear exhibit towered above the grass at 8' tall. There were some cottonwoods that may be black cottonwood. I need to try to find out the species and take some measurements. Back in the Smokies, I spotted a yellow birch on Jim Branch that looked quite tall even though it was an older tree with a flat crown. Just ~100 yards away grew the current eastern height record, which I originally thought this tree must be. But it was a different tree. I shot up with the laser from underneath and roughed it ~105'- then I realized my rangefinder was still in meters from an earlier plot with the Park Service! I went upslope and confirmed a 116.7' top on a 6'10" trunk. Sorry John and Bob but you have some more searching to do! Back in Asheville today I was pruning a tree and spotted a gorgeous, massive Norway spruce two doors down. A stealthy trip to the base and a solid height measurement suggest this may be a new state co-champion (again I do not know the current champion from the new survey). The 8'11" trunk slowly tapers to a top 107.5' up. With a 45' spread this tree has 227 points which nearly ties a huge one in Fletcher, NC (228 points). I have located a large American larch in Asheville that I will report on soon. I am not sure if NC has a listing for this species. There is also a huge (for the mountains) pecan that will be a Buncombe County champion, crushing 2X the former champion. I also found a huge (again, for the mountains) and rare sugarberry today that also crushes the Buncombe County champion by 3x. It is 10'6" X 80' X 66'. I found larger ones in Hotsprings, NC last year, but for the Asheville area and not being by a stream it rules! Will   Home